DETAILS!

Good morning parents!

   I had intended to send this out yesterday but caught up (and completely soaked) in our Wild Wednesday!

   Our show is tomorrow (how did that happen so quickly??) and so here are some things you need to know:

1. Jitterbugs will run as normal tomorrow from 9am - 3:30pm. 
2. In order to allow our campers time to get home and have supper, we are asking that they be back at the Firehall for 5:15pm
3. Doors for the theatre will open at 5:30pm
4. Our SHOW is at 6pm and will run about 40-45 mins, including the presentation of certificates at the end
5. if possible we'd like our campers to come back tomorrow dressed for the show in a grey t-shirt (inside out to hide a logo is fine) and dark pants or shorts. 
6. footwear: so that they can dance and move freely onstage. please make sure your child has shoes on that will not come off easily. Sandals are okay as long as they are securely fastened, but flip-flops are not allowed.

   Also we have begun giving tickets out already. If you haven't got yours yet please make sure you come find me (or another staff member) and grab them. There are still tickets available for sale and there may be some left at the door, but it's also possible we'll sell out so if you want to make sure you get some buy them ahead of time!

   Thanks; we\re really excited to put our show on for you...!

   Mr. Ben

   Program Director, Jitterbugs

Wild Water Wednesday

Good morning Jitterbugs families!

   Your kids may have told you excitedly already, but tomorrow is a big day! On top of the departure from our regular class schedule in order to do a first full runthrough of our show (which is going to be amazing ~ your kids are doing so well!), we'll be doing crafts, a second runthrough, and THEN...

...meaning we are all going to troupe en masse up to the splash pad behind the Ancaster library for a couple of hours of outdoor play!

To make it a safe and fun excursion, here is what we need from you:

• please send your child to camp already in their swimsuit. We will not be helping kids change into our out of swimsuits, so unless they are staying for aftercare (in which case they'll be given a chance to change) we will be sending them home in what they wore to the splash pad
• please send your child to camp with sunscreen already applied. This will a) make sure we have more time to play and don't have to spend time applying it for them and b) make sure that we don't apply anything that they might react to. We do have some sunscreen here for "emergencies" but obviously it would be better if we didn't have to use it
• also, please send them with a hat, lots of water, they usual snack, and a towel

Also tomorrow before we go we will be distributing our summer camp shirts so that all of the Jitterbugs can be easily identified while we are there. We should be back at the Firehall again for around 3pm, but if you want to come and meet your child at the splashpad before that we can also dismiss them directly from there if you prefer.

Hope that all makes sense; please let me or any of the staff know if you have any questions!
Thanks
Mr. Ben
Program Director, Jitterbugs

tickets and DVDs!

Good afternoon parents:

   This second post today is to let you know about how we handle tickets and DVDs for the program (order forms for which can be found in the sidebar of this blog):

Tickets:

• each child will receive two complimentary tickets to the 6pm show on Friday. Stamped with the Jitterbugs logo, these tickets grant priority seating in the first 4-5 rows of the theatre.
• additional tickets may be purchased ahead of time  at pickup or dropoff (or at the door while supplies last) for $2 each and are general admission to the rest of the theatre
• the capacity of the theatre is 120 so we have room for family and friends, but tickets will be first-come-first-serve...!
• we will have tickets ready for pickup by Thursday at the latest

DVDs:

• this year instead of collecting DVD order forms we will be sending out a weblink to a downloadable version of the camp video, which will include all kinds of behind the scenes footage, a photo montage, and the entire final show.
• IF you wish to purchase an actual physical DVD the cost will be $10; the form is available for download on the right ---->

Additionally:

• doors open at 5:30
• kids will be dismissed at 3:30 as usual but need to be back at the Firehall for 5:15pm

...Please let us know if you have any further questions.

Thanks!

Mr. Ben

Program Director, Jitterbugs

Jitterbugs REDUX

Good morning Jitterbugs parents!

   As you may be aware, this is the first summer we have been running Jitterbugs as a full-day program, and as with any change this has meant a little bit of adjustment.

   That being the case, it turns out we still have a few spots available for our 3rd session, and so if your child is desperately missing camp and you think they might love coming back again for a second time this summer, then for the first (and likely only) time, we are making signup available to them so they can come and do it all again with a whole new group of kids! Session 3 starts next Monday, August 1st and runs until August 12th

   As much as possible, we will also try to move them into a different age group from the one they were previously in so that some of the show material they learn will be different too.

   Hope to see some familiar faces next week!

   Thanks
   Mr. Ben
   Program Director, Jitterbugs

 

Stage 2 Talent Show & notes for next week!

Hello Jitterbugs families!

   Can you believe it's already the end of week one? It has flown by and your kids have already learned SO much!

   Today was a slightly different format than our regular daily schedule: we had our first class and group activity, including our first full-group rehearsal of music and dance for the show. After our morning snack break, though, we ran the next two classes back-to-back in order to be able to get downstairs in time for the Stage 2 talent show!

   The Jitterbugs were an excellent audience and seemed to really enjoy all the acts (musical instruments, dance routines, songs, karate, magic...!) - ask them which was their favourite!

   Next week we will spend Monday and Tuesday putting the finishing touches on all the components of the show (look for possible homework in your camper's bag!), and then Wednesday the rubber really hits the road: we run our show for the first time from end-to-end, which is a big accomplishment for all of us! So, to celebrate, we will then be walking en masse up to the splash pad behind the Ancaster Library for Wild Water Wednesday! We'll give you more details next week.

   Thanks so much for entrusting your lovely and talented kids to us; we love our jobs!
   Mr. Ben and the Jitterbugs Team!

 

Meet the Staff

Good afternoon parents!

   By this point in the session, your children have likely already got to know all of our discipline heads and associates, along with me and our session volunteer, but I thought you also might like to know what amazing people we have hired for the summer...!

   Our Head Instructors are experts in their discipline, and have a ton of experience working with Jitterbug-aged kids:

                                   Samantha Rutherford: Music Head             Laura Bottrell: Dance Head

Kat Baranowski: Dance Head

      Our Associates are paired up with one of our groups of same-aged Jitterbugs and taskr them around to all of our various classes and activities:

                                          Ashlyn Richard: Bigs (Gr.1&2)                  Zoe Fiddes: Bites (SK&Gr.1)

Cathy Huang: Bits (JK & SK)

    We also have an amazing and dedicated volunteer who picks up all the slack, including making our beautiful banners, creating all kinds of crafts, doing some of our admin work, and playing with the kids!

Cailey Pelletier: Volunteer sessions 1&2

   For bios, please visit http://theatreancaster.com/jitterbug_staff.html

One unrelated note: with the possibility that it may be cool enough for us to play outside in the morning, please send your child to camp with sunscreen applied every day; this will save us a ton of time applying it before our group time. Thanks so much!

Happy Wednesday!

Mr. Ben

Program Director, Jitterbugs

sunny days....

Good afternoon parents!

   Today because it was not melting-pot hot we walked en masse over to our sister site at Memorial High School (just across the road) to play outside for our first full-camp group activity of the day. We brought frisbees, balls, hula hoops, and a staff full of creative fun ideas!

   Under the Day Nurseries Act once the temperature goes above 25 degrees C we cannot go outside, so given the forecast for the rest of the week we may end up being inside a whole lot, but we are ready for anything!

    Each day we also have time for free play, including costumes, play dough, trains, puppets, cars, drawing, imaginative play in our castle....
 

and in our first day of Drama we spent time thinking of and trying to draw different feelings...!

Happy Tuesday!

Mr. Ben

Program Director, Jitterbugs